Students play at least a fifty percent part in their own education – and, personally, I would argue more of a percentage. My mom always used to say, “You take out exactly what you put in.” If you put in nothing worthwhile, that’s exactly what you’re going to take from it. Personal experience has taught me that that’s true – the subjects I loved in high school and put more time into, the better I did in them. When I barely paid attention to them, I got poor grades. Doing well can be very difficult, especially as you pay attention to the messages other students and even educators can send, but it is incredibly worth it. The more you care about something, the more you’re going to master the material. An argument can be made, like Game of Schools mentions, that if it doesn't interest you, you don't participate as highly. That's definitely something to overcome as a teacher. How can you convince a student to feel passionately about a subject so they begin even a minimal mastery of the material? What can teachers do to foster personal pride in achievement (besides walking the walk, which is rather obvious)?